Do the recent events connected with the investigation of the Smoleńsk catastrophe bring us closer to the truth about its causes? It is difficult to say it explicitly. Surely we know more about….the process of the investigation.

The information about uncovering the signs of explosive materials on the remnants of the airplane which crashed on 10 April 2010 at Smoleńsk and later denials of military procurators raised emotions, and acute comments; as well as the mutual attacks between the groups of Jarosław Kaczyński and Donald Tusk. These mutual attacks moved what the public opinion could have learned about the catastrophe to the further plan or rather the investigation in this matter.

What a procurator had denied was not the most important, but what he had said – says parliamentarian Jacek Świat, a member of the Parliamentary Team for Investigation of the Causes of the Catastrophe of TU-154M, a widower of deceased Aleksandra Natalia Świat, one of the casualties of the Smoleńsk catastrophe. – The fact that nothing has been done for over two years. The procurator did not answer why no investigation had been done in relation to the presence of explosive materials. And during such a catastrophe the thesis about an assassination must be one of the basic ones, which should have been verified. And in the first days! The airplane samples should have been taken, as well as of the equipment, ground, and the bodies of the casualties. The signs of the explosion might have been seen there. But it was not done.

If not fog, then TNT

Emotions connected with the catastrophe in the recent time have been growing day by day. Information about swapping other bodies of the casualties- including the one of president Ryszard Kaczorowski and two priests, repeated their burials, appearing photos of injured casualties on internet – including president Lech Kaczyński, conclusions of the scientific conference on the causes of the catastrophe, finally the mysterious death of ensign Remigiusz Muś, one of the most important witnesses of the military procurators’ investigation, who had questioned the reliability of official reports on the commands given from the control tower to the pilots of the airplane…

And later a serious daily journal informs on the first page that on the remnants of the airplane signs of explosive materials were found: TNT and nitroglycerin. In this atmosphere, in this tension, information must have caused what appeared. And nervous reaction of Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of the Law and Justice party was justified by circumstances, when he said about the murder of the passengers of the airplane flying to Smoleńsk and called Donald Tusk to dismiss especially that the latter one was responsible for no progress in the investigation.

– The chairman Kaczyński should not have said it but he was provoked – says a member of the aforementioned team. Could it be a thought out provocation? – It could. Wasn’t it an accidental event that at one time there was death of the ensign, mistakes during burials and making the photos of the dead president public? In one move somebody was trying to disavowed the chairman and make it difficult to ask questions about the assassination. Not many people are going to say: if not fog, then TNT…

Some part of the article was also exaggerated but the whole text defends itself. Polish procurators have been in Russia recently in order to investigate the wreckage. – Surely, it must have been a reason for it. And it was not the reason that they had just recalled it to themselves – he says.

The matter is open

Didn’t the conclusions of the daily journal and later of politicians go too far? Maybe yes – admits Jacek Świat but the daily journal is serious, and the author is much experienced and it is difficult to believe it that he decided on the tabloid sensation. The basis for the article must have been strong and the editorial office and the author can’t surely reveal everything.

– Procurators, which does not convince the public opinion easily, left the matter open – says Jacek Świat. – The procurator admitted that there are traces and they must be investigated. He did not confirm the thesis about the explosive materials or an assassination, but he was not able to deny it either. The matter is open.

It is important what was revealed accidentally, that investigations on the presence of explosive materials had not been done earlier – We do not know if any additional reasons appeared if just now procurators have gone to take samples for investigation – says Jacek Świat. – There are more and more questions and we have been in the zero point for over two years. Moreover, a lot of evidences got lost. It is going to be more and more difficult to explain what really happened.

The denial of procurators and the daily journal was so weak that Jarosław Kaczyński supported the opinion on the last events. Also because he has his source of information. – First, separate visits were impossible, later there was removing the protection of the president, next what was connected with directing the airplane, the catastrophe, de-informative action, which happened so quickly that it was difficult to imagine that it had not been prepared – said the chairman to journalists just after the denial. As he reminded, the chief of the Foreign Ministry Radosław Sikorski said in the first moments after the catastrophe that it had been a mistake of the pilots. – How did he know it?

Fear, stupidity or incompetence

Governmental mass media were willing to quote the strong words of Kaczyński, omitting the public statement of Tusk. – It is not possible to live in the same country with those who formulate such conclusions – the prime minister said to journalists, referring to the words of the chairman of the Justice and Law party.

According to Jacek Światek, the nervousness of the prime minister can be easily explained. – He is attacking, knowing that he is defending himself. Saying about devastating the public life, he forgets that has devastated it already with his decisions and the fact that he has patronized of the industry of contempt for years. – He did an unacceptable thing: he caused unprecedented neglect. I do not know if the reason was fear, stupidity or incompetence. This team should be removed from politics for ever. The more time passes from the catastrophe, the more questions are raised. After the scandal of the swapped bodies we know that in Poland autopsies of the catastrophe casualties were not done – it is reprehensible. There are more efforts of specialists for images of employed by the governing people. Maybe the media hype after the unsuccessful or provoked text in the newspaper was to drown other events? – For example, the effects of the scientific conference before a few days, during which the decisions of the so-called Miller’s commission were overthrown (among the others about the armoured birch), ‘swapping’ of bodies of the casualties, the death of the consign Muś, etc. – wonders Jacek Świat. Suddenly they nearly disappeared from the orbit of the interest of mass media.